August28th

That Justin Trudeau has dabbled with pot likely surprised few in Canada. However, his recent admission that he took his last puff just three years ago is provocative.

We’re used to politicians saying they tried marijuana in their carefree youth. And used to them drastically playing down the amount they smoked – that is, if they actually inhaled at all. But these types of political confessions stopped being news a long time ago.

What’s different about Mr. Trudeau’s divulgence is his acknowledgment he did it just a few years ago, while an MP. And, not insignificantly, while the possession of marijuana was still a criminal offence in this country – and remains so. That is either politically brave or stupid. It is without question refreshingly honest.

It’s doubtful Mr. Trudeau and his advisers would not have considered the potential fallout of his story about sharing a joint with friends at his Montreal home. ( He also said he’s only tried marijuana five or six times in his life, and has never done other hard drugs ). They likely determined that those who might be offended by his revelation were proba. . . . . READ MORE

August28th

Conservatives MPs across Canada are expressing their disdain for Liberal Party Leader Justin Trudeau after his public admission to smoking marijuana while holding elected office.

Kamloops-Thompson-Cariboo MP Cathy McLeod added her voice to the chorus on Thursday.

“There are laws in place; if people don’t believe them, there’s a system and a process whereby you change them,” she said. “Mr. Trudeau was very aware of the laws in place. I think as a member of Parliament he shouldn’t be breaking those laws.”

Trudeau laid out his past marijuana use in a lengthy interview and in an exchange with reporters Thursday in which he made no apologies.

He said he’s smoked pot five or six times in his life – including three years ago during a backyard get-together – and never really liked it much.

Now that he’s come clean about using pot, he said, he’d like to move on and talk about the hundreds of thousands of people who have a criminal record for it.

August26th

Trudeau’s confession that he smoked a joint after becoming an MP has put the pot-smoking predilections of politicians – if any – under the microscope.

It now seems every parliamentarian is being asked if they’ve ever fired up a fattie.

For the record, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird says he has stayed away from the drug after seeing a U.S. Supreme Court nominee withdraw after it emerged he smoked marijuana in college.

“I came of age politically in the 1980s and I can recall when one of President ( Ronald ) Reagan’s nominees for the U.S. Supreme Court had to withdraw because of his use of that substance, so I took my example from that,” Baird said.

The question also came up at a news conference with Employment Minister Jason Kenney and Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander.

Kenney says he has never smoked a joint – although he did admit to drinking coffee, a jab at the java-averse Trudeau.